>>> Mid-Range with Special Geometry (specially ground for food release and glide but blade is kept slightly thicker for durability)

This Knife Feels...

Heavy in Hand (hefty, durable)

Light (nimble, maneuverable)

>>> Not too heavy, not too light (Switzerland)

GENERAL USES OF THIS KNIFE

Santoku

Our version of a Japanese Santoku, this is an extremely versatile knife that functions similarly to a Chef knife. Santoku literally translates from Japanese as "three virtues" which refers to the three tasks this knife does exceedingly well: slice, dice, and mince. While Santoku knives generally lend themselves towards a chopping motion, we have also designed the blade with just enough belly to facilitate a rocking motion as well.

This is a revamp of our original "NORA" knife. We started by making a single Santoku design and that is all we sold our first year in business. Since then we have had roughly 4 different versions of our Santoku and I think we finally arrived on a blade profile and handle that really work great. We took our original Santoku blade profile and combined it with our larger handle style. The two work well together.

STEEL INFORMATION:

AEB-L STAINLESS STEEL

This knife blade is composed of AEB-L stainless steel which is a high-quality Swedish metal, originally developed for razor blades. Recently, steel suppliers have made this steel available in thicker sheets and it has proven to be an excellent adaptation for the cutlery industry.

AEB-L has a beautiful balance of carbon and chromium and, with proper heat treatment, this steel produces both a very fine edge as well as excellent toughness and edge stability. The fine grain structure also makes this steel very easy to sharpen. We believe it is one of the finest stainless steels available on the market today for use with kitchen knives.

As a side note, there are two things we like to mention about this steel:

1.) This steel responds beautifully to honing and if the knife is honed regularly it should need infrequent sharpening.

2.) AEB-L is a stainless steel but just barely. The higher carbon content in this stainless is what allows it to get a fine edge and higher hardness than other stainless steels but it also has a tendency to sometimes form very fine rust spots on the blade. If this happens, these are easily removed with a green scotch brite pad and usually the rough end of a kitchen sponge will also do the trick.

HANDLE DESIGN & MATERIALS:

Every one of our knives is handmade, numbered and unique. This NORA knife, number #1199, is a crisp mix of various G10 colors. G10 is an incredibly strong & durable fiberglass laminate that was originally used in the electronics industry. It has been adapted in the knife making world and has proven to be an excellent material for handles as it has high strength, low moisture absorption and can be found in a variety of colors. Its one of our favorite materials to work with outside of wood.